Black Tucker boots

I bought these boots from Freeman, Hardy and Willis in Billingham town center. Tucker boots, as we called them. They were on the sale rack; cost me £5. It was 1985.



They have been to London, Luxembourg and Leeds (not necessarily in that order).

They went to a Depeche Mode concert at Whitley Bay Ice Rink in 1988, where the audience stood on temporary plywood flooring atop the ice, and dancing was pivotal to preventing frostbite.

They once became completely covered in thick mud during an ill-advised shortcut through a construction site, and recovered only after many, many hours of careful work with a soft brush.

Amazingly, they're still wearable. Sure, they're a little worn and scuffed, and the suede is pulling away from the heel in a couple of places. But the soles are still sturdy and even, despite many hours of pavement pounding, dancing, sightseeing and lounging.

I've disposed of less-perfect shoes. I've given many pairs to the Salvation Army with hardly a scratch. But these I keep, in part because they remind of being 16 years old, wandering around Billingham with just enough pocket money for a new pair of boots.